Tuesday, September 13, 2005

Kyle Baker fans, take heart

Although it looks like Plastic Man has been cancelled, the Beat has the goods on a hot new exclusive.

Rob

6 comments:

Rob said...

I like some of Baker's stuff, but I never felt like Plastic Man was that GOOD. Maybe I'm just a fan of the more traditionally drawn and written Plas. It's kind of the same way I felt about that Spanish guy doing Spectacular Spiderman about a year or two ago (really cartoony, squarish drawing style, smallish eyes on the characters, sorry I can't remember his name) - I never felt like the essence of the characters came out in a less "comic book" style. I guess I'm a traditionalist.

I did like the stuff he did for Mad - seemed to fit his style a lot better.

--*Rob

Rob S. said...

Humberto Ramos?

I liked his run on Impulse a lot, but haven't been too fond of his work since.

And I agree with you to a certain extent. While I liked Plastic Man, it never entirely succeeded, even on its own terms (let alone the marketplace). In a way, I thought Baker's handling of the supporting cast--particularly his "daughter"--was much more interesting than Plas himself.

Rob said...

Yes! I kept thinking Umberto....

I got about 4 or 5 of the Plas issues and it never really clicked for me. I just didn't like Baker's take on it.

I've never been super-heavy into keeping up with the artists who draw the books, but when I see something I really don't like - I know it. Also - when I see something I really like - I make a note as well. Alex Ross comes to mind as someone whose work I really LOVE because though it is a hyper realistic style, it also echoes the true heroic vision I always think about from the characters' origins.

Know what I mean?

--*Rob

Sharon GR said...

I love Baker, but I never saw Plastic Man. The Kyle Baker-Cartoonist books were good, but King David, Cowboy Wally and Why I Hate Saturn are classics. For those alone I would give him the benefit of the doubt on any new project.

Greg! said...

Showing my age and/or comic geek index: all this Kyle baker talk has me thinking fond thoughts of his run on The Shadow with Andy Helfer. How long ago was THAT?

Rob S. said...

The series started in '87, but the first six issues had Bill Sienkiewicz art. Baker started with issue 8 (after a fill in by Marshall Rogers, IIRC), so most of his run was probably in 1988.

Damn, that was a fine series. Nothing like a helicopter decapitation of an already-dead body. Good stuff.